Best beauty products for under £5

You don’t have to spend a fortune on beauty products to look fantastic. In fact, many of the most effective beauty products cost less than a fiver! Below are our top 15 ‘must-haves’…

We’ve cherry-picked the savviest beauty buys for under a fiver

The key to looking great is not spending hours in a spa but knowing the best beauty products. These are the buys that do exactly what they say on the tin, but don’t cost a fortune.

Here are our best beauty buys for under £5:

1. E45 Cream – under £4 for 125g

E45 Cream is one of the UK’s best-selling moisturisers – apparently Cheryl Cole swears by it! It’s a daily, perfume-free skin moisturiser that’s worth every penny as it’s been clinically proven to treat, soften and soothe dry, flaky or chapped skin. Get it for less here.

2. Batiste Dry Shampoo – under £3 for 200ml

Batiste Dry Shampoo is often spotted in bags at London Fashion Week – Holly Willoughby is a fan! It’s the perfect product if you’re having a bad hair day – over 2.5 million in the UK agree. Simply shake the can, spray into your roots, massage through with your fingertips, then brush and style as usual. It will revive your hair and leave it smelling gorgeous in seconds. Great for adding volume and de-greasing. One of the best beauty products around and a great standby to have in your handbag. Get it for less here.

3. Glycerin and Rosewater Toner – under £3 for 200ml

Glycerin and Rosewater toner is one of those long-held beauty secrets – ask your gran! Glycerin is, in fact, an oil-free moisturiser and rosewater has skin-nourishing properties. When the two are combined, the result is hailed as a true miracle potion! Unlike other toners, it doesn’t dry the skin, but instead cools, softens and moisturises. Get it for less here.

4. Vaseline Lip Therapy – under £2 for 20g

A traditional product, Vaseline is still functional and stylish. Nothing quite works like Vaseline for sore, chapped and flaky lips. Use as a lip reviver or as a gloss over your lipstick. You can also use it for dry patches on your cheeks, elbows and knees. Get it for less here.

5. Johnson’s Baby Oil – under £3 for 300ml

Johnson’s Baby Oil has multiple beauty benefits. Use it post-shower on damp skin to give your skin a moisturising glow. It’s a great make-up remover and is especially good for sensitive skin. You can use it to remove your eye make- up, applying it with cotton wool. It will soften and moisturise the skin around the eyes as it works. Get it for less here.

6. Boots Essential Cucumber Eye Gel – under £2 for 15ml

Boots’ Cucumber Eye Gel is ideal if you’re suffering from puffy tired eyes with dark circles because cucumber has long been used to help refresh the eye area. This gel is very easily absorbed and cools and hydrates the eye area to reduce puffiness. Get it here.

7. Sanctuary 5 Minute Thermal Detox Mask – £3 for 15ml sachet

Sanctuary’s 5 Minute Thermal Detox Mask is just like having a mini facial. It’s one of the best beauty products for under £5! Apply and literally feel it heat up on your face. Wash it off gently and you’ll feel your skin is instantly cleaner, more polished and radiant. It’s a miracle in a sachet… Get it here.

8. Neutrogena Hand and Nail Cream – under £4

Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand and Nail Cream is a beauty favourite. This dense, rich cream totally transforms dry hands and works in the driest and coldest of climates which makes it a real winner. Get it for less here.

9. Oilatum Cream – under £4 for 50g, or 150g under £5

Oilatum Cream is an ideal body and foot cream. Known as an emollient (a soothing agent) it’s used in the treatment of eczema, dermatitis and dry, sensitive skin. This means it will help to moisturise your skin after washing and is ideal if you’re looking for softer skin. Plus right now Superdrug are selling bigger 150g tubes for under £5.

11. Epsom salts – under £2 for 200g

Epsom salts are a beauty staple that celebrities love to use as a miracle fix. They’re a favourite of Jessica Alba: “I add them to the bath along with eucalyptus essential oil to ease water retention.”

Here are the reasons we love them:

Great for bloating. Epsom salts help reduce water retention and release any nasty toxins and excess fluid. A quick way to a flatter tummy! Give your body a good scrub to open pores before a long soak in the bath.

Get bouncy, healthy hair by using a handful of Epsom salts when you shampoo.

Swollen, hot feet? Half a cup of Epsom salts will freshen them up and fix any puffiness.

Spot buster – great to use as an exfoliator to get rid of dead skin and detoxify.

12. Sudocrem – under £3 for 125g

Not just a nappy rash cream, this best beauty product is a wonder cream that can help combat acne, dry skin, and cold sores. Much cheaper than your average all-in-one cream and it works just as well. Get it for less here.

13. Red Fox Bottle O’Butter – under £4 for 473ml

A product at one time only available in Afro and Afro-Caribbean shops and salons, this cocoa butter body cream is a beauty must-have you won’t be able to live without. Great for dry skin and can also be applied as after-sun. It’ll give your skin a glossy, silky feel that will last literally all day.

14. L’oreal Paris Elnett Hairspray – under £4 for 200ml

This product will do an amazing job keeping your hair perfectly in place. It’s a beauty buy that gives a flawless finish and is loved by everyone from Claudia Schiffer to Megan Fox. It was also voted “The Hairstyler” in the Woman & Home Best in Beauty Awards 2014. Get it for less here.

15. St Ives apricot scrub – under £5

This is the UK’s best-selling facial scrub. It contains lots of naturally derived ingredients and will quickly get rid of your dead cells, revealing radiant healthier, glowing skin. Get it for less here.

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